96% Hugo

All Critics (131) | Top Critics (37) | Fresh (126) | Rotten (5)

'Hugo': Scorsese's humbling hommage to his favorite art

Thematic potency and cinematic virtuosity -- the production was designed by Dante Ferretti and photographed by Robert Richardson -- can't conceal a deadly inertness at the film's core.

For all the wizardry on display, Hugo often feels like a film about magic instead of a magical film...

I have seen the future of 3-D moviemaking, and it belongs to Martin Scorsese, unlikely as that may sound.

It's a fairy tale for mature viewers, but the airy exterior hides emotional depth.

One of the most magical viewing experiences of the decade so far.

Martin Scorsese unleashes his devotion to the magic of movies with a zeal that is enchanting.?

For youngsters with a secret sense of wonder about how the world works, Scorsese is offering a golden key to a limitless world of make-believe.

A masterpiece of visual storytelling and a heartfelt homage to the industry that Scorsese has triumphantly made his own.

Beautifully made and superbly acted, Hugo features terrific 3D effects and stands as a charming love letter to silent cinema, but it's let down by a weak central plot and the script never quite connects on an emotional level.

It might be curtains for celluloid, but Scorsese, a boyish 69, clearly isn't leaving the stage any time soon. He directs every film with the passion of his first. And it shows.

Director Martin Scorsese's well-documented affection for all things cinema has never been more evident than in the enchanting and imaginative Hugo.

It sounds a bit strange to say this about the man who gave us Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, and so many other classics of hardcore machismo, but Martin Scorsese's new movie Hugo is delightful.

Scorsese's best film since Goodfellas... a celebration of the transportive joy that comes from watching [movies].

The charming if overly gilded story of an unwanted teenage boy rescued by art and friendship.

Something very rare: a celebration of past achievement that doesn't succumb to nostalgia. Scorsese pays his respects to the past but also demonstrates that the artform Melies loved remains exciting.

This love letter to the movies is something to cherish.

This is a great director's greatest love story.

Scorsese uses 3D to submerge viewers into a glittering storybook world, but all of Hugo's beauty can't make up for the sidetracking of the tale of the orphaned boy living in the train station in favor of a film preservation PSA.

If however, you are not a film scholar or a fan of the period, Scorsese will skillfully turn you into one without you even knowing it.

Scorcese does not mess around. This is a magnificent film.

The movie itself runs a bit long at 127 minutes, but "Hugo" is worth every minute for the visual feast it provides.

Hugo is a love affair -- palpable and personal -- between director Marty Scorsese and cinema. It sputters, floats, and soars.

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Source: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/hugo/

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